One must be careful painting Home Owners' Associations (HOAs) and Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs) with a broad brush. They are not all the same.
Six years ago, I started looking at buying a house. I was also a licensed amateur radio operator at the time. After spending some time looking at existing houses in my price range, I came to the conclusion that any existing house I bought would come with structural or mechanical issues that I would not want to deal with. So, I decided to build a new house. But, I could not afford to build a house on a lot out in the country without CC&Rs and get the kind of house I wanted, so I ended up in a residential development that was still in the building phase.
When I signed the contract to build my house, I knew that there would be CC&Rs attached and that an HOA would eventually be formed after the developer turned the community over to the owners. I was presented with a copy of the CC&Rs and I believe I signed a document indicating that I had received a copy and would abide by them. I did so willingly.
I won't go into great detail about what my CC&Rs cover, but suffice it to say that they include things like parking of recreational or commercial vehicles in the driveway, roof material, fences, the visibility of garbage cans, auxiliary structures such as mini-barns, animals other than household pets, exterior lighting, bug zappers, mailboxes, awnings, solar panels, and...antennas.
Here's what my CC&Rs say about antennas:
No antenna, satellite dish, or other device for the transmission or reception of radio, television, or satellite signals or any other form of electromagnetic radiation shall be erected, used or maintained outdoors and above ground, whether attached to a building or otherwise, on any part of the Property, including Lots, with the written approval of the Architectural Review Committee, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld;...
OK, so they've prohibited any antenna unless you get approval from the ARC. Now, it gets interesting:
...provided, however, that any such device may be installed and maintained on any Lot without necessity of such written approval if:
- it is not visible from the neighboring Lots, streets or Common Area;
- or the Owner, prior to installation, has received the written concent of the Owners of all Lots who would have views of the device from their Lots;
- or the device is virtually indistinguishable from structures, devices, or improvements...which are not prohibited by these covenants or Bylaws;
- or it is a satellite dish 1 meter or less in diameter and not affixed to the roof of a residence;
- or if prohibition of the installation, use, and maintenance of such device is specifically preempted and superseded by applicable governmental authority.
Given that Part 97 already incorporates a preemption of zoning laws with regard to amateur radio antenna structures, I think I can make a reasonable argument that an "applicable governmental authority" has preempted the antenna prohibitions contained in my CC&Rs.
Also, I have attended every general HOA meeting since I moved into the neighborhood. I have learned from attending these meetings that HOAs are only as powerful as they choose to be. In many cases, their only legal recourse against a property owner who violates the CC&Rs is to file suit in an applicable court of law. Attorneys and law suits cost money and I think any HOA board would be very cautious about what violations they choose to pursue.